13499 research outputs found
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Oral History of Stephane Gauger
No full textAn oral history with Stephane Gauger, a graduate of Cal State University, Fullerton where he majored in Theater, he is now a film director, screenwriter and cinematographer. This interview focused on his experiences as an Amerasian growing up in America with his Vietnamese mother who he describes as a “gypsy mother” and his ties to Vietnam through creating and supporting Vietnamese cinema. He is volunteering with the Vietnamese American Oral History Project in order to help preserve the history of his experiences.Recorded Digitall
Oral History of Ty Thai
No full textThis is an oral history of Ty Thai, born in Cần Thơ, Vietnam in 1960 to a large family with six other siblings. He lived in Cần Thơ and attended school there until the Communists took over in 1975. He lived under the Communist regime for three years before leaving his hometown in 1978 as a boat refugee to seek freedom in the United States. He arrived at a Malaysian refugee camp and was able to come to America after completing an immigration interview. After one year, a family friend sponsored him to the United States in November 1979. He currently works at an import and export warehouse and resides in Los Angeles County, California with his family.Recorded Digitall
Oral History of Lee Brandt
No full textAn oral history with Mr. Lee Brandt who was adopted out of Vietnam at the age of ten to an American family in the United States through Operation Babylift and the program Friends of Children of Viet Nam (FCVN). This interview focuses on the circumstances of his adoption, along with his life with his adoptive family and his integration into the United States. It also centers on his travels and the places he lived in, such as Switzerland, Singapore, Massachusetts, and California. He hopes to tell this story to his son when he is older.Recorded Digitall
Oral History of Tran Thy Van
No full textOral history of Mr. Tran Thy Van, born in 1944 in Quang Nam, Vietnam. He resides in Huntington Beach, California at the time of interview. His early childhood was marked by the departure of his mother and a vagabond life with his father. His schooling was haphazard, and in his early twenties he went to Thu Duc Military Academy, a training school for officers joining the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. In 1968 he matriculated from Thu Duc with the rank of Thiếu úy [Second Lieutenant]. He joined the ground troops of the [Biệt Đồng Quân] and worked up to lead a battalion of 160 soldiers. In 1974 he lost both his legs from a landmine explosion and was discharged from the military. At the time he had a wife and six children. After he returned from service, he parted ways with his wife and lived with three of his children. He remarried and had three more children. In 1983 he and one of his sons escaped Vietnam by boat, passed through a refugee camp in Thailand, and resettled in Orange County where they sponsored his second wife and unmarried children. Tran Thy Van remained active with South Vietnamese veteran organizations and has published accounts of his life and military experience.Recorded Digitall
Oral History of Nhut Van Tran
No full textOral history of Nhu Van Tran, born in Saigon, Vietnam in 1935. He was a General in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam, and at the end of his military career he was commanding officer for the central region, known for the battle of An Loc. He came to the United States on two separate occasions for training with the U.S. Military. He got married at the age of 22 and has four children. In 1975, he and his family were evacuated to Camp Pendleton and then were sponsored by a patron in Texas. They moved from Texas to San Diego and then settled in Orange County. In America he has held a variety of jobs from gardening to working in an oil refinery and Navy shipyard.Recorded Digitall
Oral History of Minhmerit Van Nguyen
No full textOral history of Minh Nguyen, a mechanic who now resides in various parts in
Orange County, California. He was born on August 3, 1964 in Vietnam. He discusses
how the Vietnam war did not affect his family much, because of their good family name.
He also talks about his fondest memories with his parents while they were living in South
Vietnam. Mr. Nguyen also talks about his first arrival to the United Staes, and how he
had to start working two part time jobs.Recorded Digitall
Oral History of Bui Van Chuc (aka Quyen Di)
No full textOral History of Bui Van Chuc, who is known by the name of Quyen Di, born in Hanoi, Vietnam in 1948. He migrated with his family to Saigon in 1954 and recalls his education in Vietnam in great detail. Quyen Di became a teacher at Da Lat University and also taught 12th grade in Saigon after he finished his education in Vietnam. He met his wife, who was also a teacher at the same school. They left Vietnam in 1977 as boat refugees and passed through refugee camps in Malaysia and Hong Kong. After arriving in Alaska and then resettled to New Orleans, he decided to move to Orange County, California where he has lived since. He worked in several jobs, including publishing Vietnamese-language publications but has returned to his role as an educator.Recorded Digitall
Oral History of Alex Hieu Tran
No full textOral history of Alex Hieu Tran, born in Da Nang, Vietnam in 1957 to a large family with nine other siblings. His family lived in Hue, but he lived in Saigon and attended school there. He recalls life changing dramatically for him after 1975 because his father was sent to reeducation camp and he had to work with the youth cadres. He studied and taught a form of martial arts-meditation (chi cong) in Vietnam and continues this practice here. He came to the United States in 1992 through the Humanitarian Operation under the Orderly Departure Program after his father was released from 13 years in prison. At the time of interview he lives in Orange County, California and works in a hair salon, but also teaches chi cong.Recorded Digitall
Oral History of Huy Bui
No full textAn oral history of Huy Bui, a former United States Marine who is now an electronic technician for Ricoh Electronics. This interview focuses on his experiences as a first generation Vietnamese American who lived through the time of the Vietnam War and under communist rule for three years prior to fleeing to the United States in 1978 by boat. He speaks in detail about his life before and during the war and how things changed quickly as the communist took over control during 1975. He speaks out to the youth to remember and know about the events that occurred in Vietnam during the Vietnam War and to become activists in society to help free Vietnam and the youth who are struggling. He now resides in Midway City, California, in the heart of Little Saigon along with his wife and two children who are activists alongside him.Recorded Digitall
Oral History of Thach Ngoc Tran
No full textAn oral history project was conducted with Thach Ngoc Tran, a refugee and boat person during the Vietnam War. The interview focused on his experiences growing up during the Vietnam War, escape as a Communist soldier, and eventual reunification with his brothers in California. Thach detailed his life as a young man, and how these early life experiences shaped his views on family, marriage, and Vietnamese American culture today. Thach was kind enough to partake in this interview to help preserve his story and history.Recorded Digitall